Our whitetail rut is usually underway by the tenth of November. With whitetails ranging in elevation from 2,000 feet to 6,000 feet, it is often difficult to separate the pre-rut from the breeding rut. Often in this area very large bucks (150+ B&C) abandon their scrape lines to seek out the does in estrus. Hunts in mid to late November are the most productive as the bucks respond to rattling, grunts or snort wheeze challenges. Along with these methods the whitetails are hunted by more conventional techniques such as watching large feeding areas at dawn and dusk and the use of tree stands which have been highly productive in recent years. Slow still hunting in bedding areas is a very effective method for the largest, wariest whitetail bucks. Shots range from 40 to 100 yards usually, but the potential does exist for a shot as long as 400 yards.
